MORE AID. Massage therapist Jasmen Merioles of Matina Pangi, Davao City receives financial assistance of Php 5,000.00 from Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Administrative Officer IV Procesa V. Tipon. Merioles, 36, is pregnant and one of the 69 injured individuals following the deadly blast at Roxas Avenue Friday night.

DSWD has also provided financial augmentation of Php 10,000 plus five family food packs each to families with deceased member.  Meanwhile, DSWD social workers are conducting psycho-social sessions to traumatized individuals as the Department commits to extend additional assistance for medical, funeral and transportation requirements of the victims. (DSWD)

THE regional office of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-Davao and the Davao City Government put a collaborative effort in providing immediate assistance to the victims of the deadly bomb explosion on Friday and their relatives through a stress debriefing.

This was shared by DSWD director Mercedita Jabagat in a press statement issued on Saturday, a day after the incident.

Jabagat said the agency has started to extend helping hands to the families of the victims, as social workers conducted hospital and funeral home visits to monitor their situation.

“We will also provide additional financial assistance to affected families for medical and burial expenses and in due time, we shall conduct psychosocial intervention to affected families,” Jabagat said.

Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio has already assured the families of the victims to shoulder their needs in terms hospitalization, burial, funeral and day to day expenses through its City Social Services and Development Office (CSSDO).

Based on the report of CSSDO, they have recorded 14 dead and 67 injured due to the powerful explosion.

DSWD Secretary Judy Taguiwalo expressed her deepest sympathies for the victims of the bombing and affirmed that the department through its field office in the region will provide the necessary actions to assist the families.

Taguiwalo also urged the Filipinos to show and prove their resilience against tragedies and attacks against our collective safety and security.

“We must not be divided in our response against attacks such as this and unite in the call for justice for the victims and survivors of the Abu Sayyaf’s terrorism. We must be united in condemning and opposing all efforts and attempts to undermine the rights, safety and security of the Filipino people,” Taguiwalo said. (SSD)

FARMERS’ TRAINING. [from left] Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Director Mercedita P. Jabagat, SM Foundation AVP for Livelihood and Outreach Programs Cristie S. Angeles, and HARBEST Agribusiness Corp. President Arsenio Barcelona discuss the ongoing SM Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan Farmers’ Training Program on Sustainable Agriculture participated by Pantawid Pamilya and Sustainable Livelihood recipients.

Training venue and demonstration farm is Marilog District, Davao City. The three-month course provided inputs on Nursery Preparation, Seed Sowing, Land Preparation, Caring & Nursing of Seedling, Pruning, Trellis Preparation, Fruit Selection and Fruit Thinning, Pest and Disease Control, Irrigation & Drainage, and Postharvest Technology.

Integrated in the course is the orientation on the DSWD Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP) focused on Community Driven Enterprise Development approach which covers Self Awareness, Time Management, Financial Literacy, Product Management, Participatory Livelihood Issue Analysis, and Value Chain Analysis. (DSWD)

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in Davao City is intensifying its initiative to further empower the consumers, especially among the beneficiaries of the 4Ps (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

DTI-Davao Field Office has targeted to give an orientation on consumer rights and responsibilities to almost 1,500 beneficiaries from the indigent sector this year.

DTI-Davao Region Assistant Regional Director and concurrent head of DTI-DCFO Engr. Edwin O. Banquerigo said that this move is aimed at empowering these consumers while giving them the avenue to better appreciate the laws that protect them against deceptive, unfair and unconscionable sales acts and practices as embodied in Republic Act 7374 or the Consumer Act of the Philippines.

“It is our utmost commitment to empower consumers because when you know your rights, you will be more vigilant when making purchases,” he noted.

As such, the briefing will also be an avenue for the 4Ps beneficiaries to develop a critical attitude when availing a product or service, thus, improving their assertiveness when seeking redress.

Aside from empowering consumers, it is the goal of DTI as well to make the beneficiaries adopt an entrepreneurial mindset by integrating capability-building towards entrepreneurship during the orientation.

“It has always been our aspiration to increase everyone’s awareness of consumer rights and responsibilities while we promote the concept of sustainable consumption as a way of life,” Banquerigo added. (DTI)

DAVAO CITY (DSWD XI) -The regional office here of Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the city government immediately extended assistance to victims and families of victims of the bombing incident at Roxas Avenue Friday night.

According to Mercedita P. Jabagat, regional chief of DSWD, agency social workers readily conducted hospital and funeral home visits to ensure that immediate needs are promptly addressed.

“We will also provide additional financial assistance to affected families for medical and burial expenses and in due time, we shall conduct psychosocial intervention to affected families,” Director Jabagat said.

Meanwhile, the Local Government Unit through its City Social Services and Development Office (CSSDO) will cover all funeral and medical expenses of the victims.

Per DSWD report, 69 persons were injured and presently admitted at various hospitals in downtown Davao while 13 persons were killed following the incident which occurred around 10 in the evening of September 2.

Reported casualties were: Daniel Larida, Melanie Faith Larida, Jay Adremesin, Rogelio Caganta, Mercy Basilisco, Maria Luz Arellano, Cristelie Decolongon, Ruth Merisido, Reynaldo Salvador, Eufemia Biscocho, Christian Denver Reyes, Evelyn Sobrecary and Pipalawan Macacua.

Roxas Avenue here has been made famous with its night market which opens daily from 5 in the afternoon until two in the morning.

The place has become a convergence point of people from all walks of life, rich or poor. For some residents, it is a vibrant and safe meeting place for families, friends, students and business partners, where almost everything can be had –from food, massage, gadgets, and the most sought after ukay ukay wares of clothes, shoes, linens, pants, bags, etc.

One of the places to go when in Davao, the Roxas Avenue night market is very near Marco Polo Hotel, Aldevinco Shopping Center and Ateneo De Davao University. (DSWD)

Week 2 of Skills Training in Heavy Equipment Operation-Bulldozer NC II (National Competency II) under TESDA-TWSP (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority – Training for Works Scholarship Program. Participants are 25 Pantawid Pamilya and Sustainable Livelihood beneficiaries, as well non-Pantawid family heads of District III, Davao City with INDONELA Institute of Technology Foundation Inc. as service provider. DSWD continues to equip Pantawid families and other disadvantaged families with technical-vocational competencies to prepare them for employment as they complete the training. To date, there are 264,000 families benefiting from Pantawid Pamilya in Davao Region including families belonging to indigenous tribes. (DSWD)

DSWD XI Regional Director Mercedita P. Jabagat encourages program key stakeholders to adhere to the call for genuine compassion for the poor by capacitating them to become self-reliant during the recent Partners’ Forum at Grand Menseng Hotel.

Davao City (DSWD XI) – Local Government Units in Davao Region spearheaded by New Corella Mayor Rhodora Alcoran, Braulio E. Dujali Mayor Atty. Leah Moral-Romano and Sulop Vice Mayor Jose Jimmy Sagarino and some 26 representatives from Civil Society Organizations (CSO) participated in the recent Partners’ Forum at Grand Menseng Hotel.

The activity focused on providing key partners with information as to highlights, gains and successes of Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) program implementation in Davao Region. It also responded to issues and concerns regarding the various programs and services vis a vis the gaps based on the Social Welfare and Development Indicator (SWDI) results.

“With the expansion of the different programs and services of DSWD, it is vital that key stakeholders are informed of the accomplishments of the core social protection programs. These include sharing the thrusts and priorities of the Department as directed by the new administration,” said DSWD XI Regional Director Mercedita P. Jabagat

“We, at DSWD, adhere to the call for genuine compassion for the poor and help them to capacitate and to become self-reliant in which we believe requires a joint effort of the National Government Agencies, Local Government Units, private institutions and Civil Society Organizations,” she added.

At present, DSWD XI has 52 active CSO partners assisting the various programs and services offered in all five provinces. (DSWD)

Davao City (DSWD XI) – Some 80 Pantawid Pamilya college scholarship grantees will participate in the 4^th ESGPPA (Expanded Student Grant-In-Aid Program for Poverty Alleviation) Students’ Congress at Eden Nature Park and Resort  on August 31 – September 2.

This year’s student congress focuses on capacitating the student grantees for them to become junior Gender and Development (GAD) advocates in their respective campuses.

Topics up for discussion during the 3-day activity are: Adolescent Reproductive Health Issues and Concerns; Gender, Sexuality and Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression (SOGIE); Stigma and Discrimination; Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI); Human Rights and Philippine AIDS Prevention and Control Act of 1998 (RA 8504); and Tips in Counseling and Communication.

“The ESGPPA started in 2012 in partnership with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). ESGPPA ensures that grantees are enrolled in selected State Colleges and Universities (SUCs) duly recognized by CHED, and channelled to CHED priority courses and be extended the needed support that will guarantee completion of studies thus qualify them for a high-value added jobs in the future,” said DSWD XI Regional Director Mercedita P. Jabagat.

“ESGPPA aims to contribute in the increase of number of enrolment in higher education in line with the national government’s priority degree programs among poor households and support college graduates’ entry to labor markets through placement assistance,” she continued.

Davao Region currently has 2,028 college scholars in eight state colleges/universities –University of Southeastern Philippines (USEP) in Mabini, Tagum, Obrero and Mintal campuses; Davao Oriental State College for Science and Technology (DOSCST) in Mati City; Davao del Norte State College Panabo (DNSC) in Panabo City; Southern Philippines Agri-Business, Marine and Aquatic School of Technology (SPAMAST) in Digos City and Malita Campus. (DSWD)